Zuheir Mohsen

Zuheir Mohsen (1936-25 July 1979) was the leader of the pro-Syria as-Sa'iqa faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

Biography
Zuheir Mohsen was born in 1936 in Tulkarm, Mandatory Palestine to a family of Sunni Muslim Palestinians. At the age of 17 he joined the Ba'ath Party, and in 1957 he lost his job as a teacher for "subversive activity", and in Damascus he helped to form the as-Sa'iqa branch of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), having a pro-Syria stance. He was a pan-Arabist, saying, "There is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians, and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people", and that, "The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity." In 1976, however, he was held responsible for the Damour Massacre of up to 582 Maronites during the Lebanese Civil War. On 25 July 1979 he was killed by Mossad during Operation Wrath of God, shot in front of a casino in Cannes, France.